Overedge sewing-machine



2 Sheets-Sheet l.

(No Model.)

J. T..COLL1N'S, W. H. S'TBDMANSz J. M. MBRROW.

OVBREDGB SEWING MACHINE.

Patented Oct. 12,1897.

TH: mams rn... WASHINGTON u c (NoModel.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. T,. COLLINS, W..H. STEDMAN 8v J. M. MERROW. OVERBDGB SEWING MACHINEf No. 591,384. Patented 00p. 12,1897.

. I' UNITE-D STATES PATENT' OFFICE.

JOHN T. COLLINS AND `WILLIAM H. STEDMAN, OF HARTFORD, AND JOSEPH M. MERROW', OF MANSFIELD, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNORS TO THE MER- ROW `MACHINE COMPANY, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT.

SPECIFICATION forming part Of LettersPa-,tent N0. 591,384, dated October 12, 1897.

' Application fled May 20, 1897. Serial No. 637,448. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Beit known that we, JOHN T. COLLINS and WILLIAM H. STEDMAN, of Hartford, in the county of Hartford, andJOSEPi M. MERROW,

of Mansfield, in the county of Tolland, State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Overseaming-Machines; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of Io the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and to the figures and letters of reference marked thereon.

This invention relates to the classl of overseaming-machines employing two threads in the formation of the stitches, the latter being composed of a loop of first thread, a loop of second thread extending through the` said loop of first thread, and a second loop of first zo thread extending through the loop of second thread.

Am ong the principal Objects sought are the production of a machine capable of economical commercial use at high rates of speed 2 5 and possessing in a large degree the quality of adaptability for the reproduction of overedge finishes or seams varying widely as to depth and the thickness of fabric; also the adaptation of the new devicesand mechan- 3o isms to a high-speed type of `driving mechanism now extensively in use.

With these objects in view the present invention consists in the construction and arrangement of novel looping devices and op- 3 5 erating mechanisms therefor, as hereinafter more'fullydescribed, and pointed .out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of a machine embodying our improve- 4o ments, a portion of the casing being broken away to exhibit the working parts. Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the looping devices, shown on an enlarged scale, with the front wall of the casing removed. Fig.v 3 is a plan view of the looping mechanism. Figs.`4, '5,` 6, 7,8',

and 9 are diagrammatic views of the looping devices, illustrating different stages of the stitch-formingoperation. Fig. 10 is a detail View of the loop-carrierand needle.

Similar letters and numerals of reference in the several figures indicate the same parts.

is one to which they have been adapted, primarily, with a view to illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention in a complete structure, and, secondarily, to avoid the necessity of devising special high-speed driving mechanism, that shown having been demonstrated in practice to be amply sufficient to meet present requirements in this direction.

The characteristic features of the selected type of machine referred to are the two camcylinders geared to rotate in vunison and operating upon an oscillatory reciprocating loop-carrier on opposite sides of its pivotal center, as fully described in APatents Nos. 414,234 and 441,315. 'I VAs shown in the drawings, A indicatesv the frame of the machine; B, the main shaft; C, the needle-driving eccentric; D, the drivingpulley; E, the eccentric connection; F, the needle-lever; G, the needle-bar; H, the needle; I, the presser-foot; a, the lower grooved cam, mounted on the main shaft; a3, the upper grooved cam, supported upon a shaft a4; c' a2, the gears, connecting the two grooved cams; b,the looper-carrier,provided with arlns carrying studs or pins in engagement with the groovedl cams; h', the sliding block, carrying the pivot for the looper-carrier, and b3 b4 gibs Afeed-dog carrier; 23, the feed-lever; 24, the

eccentric connection, and 25 the feed-eccentric.

The looping mechanism is preferably located within an inclosing base 4, surmounted by awork-plate 18, the latterprovided with a pivoted or removable section 19 for convenience in obtaining access to the looping devices when adjusting, &c. A door 2O is also The particular type of machinewith which the new looping devices are shown associated' TOO provided to permit ready entrance at the end of the inclosing casing.

Two looping implements are employed, a loop-carrier l for taking the loop of needlethread below the fabric and drawing it out toward or beyond the edge and a looper 9, carrying the second or under thread and operatin g to pass a loop of second thread through the loop of needle-thread engaged by the loop-carrier and present said loop of second thread above the fabric in position to be entered by the needle as the latter descends to again penetrate the fabric. rlhe loop-carrier l is furnished with a point l0, adapted to enter the loop at the side of the needle, and with a shoulder ll on its under side near the point forming a groove or throat in which the needle-thread is received and carried laterally of the needle. It is also slotted or recessed at 12 on the side more remote from the needle to facilitate the passage of the pointof looper 9, as will hereinafter be explained.

Loop-carrier l is furnished with a shank of suitable form to permit of its attachment to its driver 2 and movement through the opening formed in the feed-dog, (see Fig. 2,) this feature being one of adaptation, as it is evident the support for the loop-carrier might be otherwise located and suitable devices employed for giving it the necessary motions in a horizontal plane, in which event the form of the shank would be correspondingly modified. The driver 2 is in the form of a sleeve mounted and taking its bearings upon a vertical stud 3, secured to the bed, and said driver receives its oscillatory motions from a spherical crank-pin 7 on the driving-shaft B, operating through connectingrod 6 on a spherical bearing or ball 5, secured to one side of driver 2. The ball 5 is formed upon a pin adjustable within a socket carried by driver 2, thus providing a means for adjusting the throw of the driver and, through the latter, the excursion of the loopcarrier l. \Vith this arrangement it will be seen that the loop-carrier will be given a complete reciprocation in a plane transverse to the needle during each revolution of the main shaft B.

The looper 9 is provided with an eye 13 for carrying the second thread, said eye being preferably countersunk and provided with the usual grooves to facilitate the passage of the second thread, and it is preferably slotted or recessed, as indicated at 14, for the passage of the vertical needle H between the side of the looper and its thread when above the fabric. The point or entering end l5 of the looper 9 is also preferably curved slightly upward and forward or toward the loop-earrier l to facilitate its entrance between the loop-carrier and the needle-thread carried thereby, this curvature of the looper being modified and adjusted to its path of motion. Looper 9 is ad justably attached to the loopercarrier Z), and the grooves in the cams d a3 are so .formed and proportioned one to the other as to produce the oscillatory reciprocating motions necessary to the formation of the stitch, which will now be explained by reference to Figs. t to i), inclusive.

Let it be assumed that the operation of the machine has been interrupted at a stage when the needle is at or near its lowest point and projecting through the fabric 17, at which time the loop-carrier l and the looper will be in positions approximately as represented in Fig. 4, the loop-carrier being nearly or quite at the end of its rearward motion and the looper retreating. The machine being now set in motion the loop-carrier l advances and, passing in close proximity tothe needle, as the latter rises it enters between the needle and its thread, and the latter contacting with the shoulder on the under side of the loop-carrier, and thus being prevented from sliding back onto the shank of the loop-carrier, the loop of needle-thread is carried horizontally toward the edge of the fabric. ln the meantime the looper 9 is moving downward to carryits point below the line of movement of the loop-carrier, substantially as represented in Fig. 5.

By the continued motions of the main shaft the needle is elevated above the cloth-plate and the loop-carrier completes its forward excursion, bringing the loop of needle-thread into the path of the looper, approximately as shown in Fig. 6.

As the needle continues to rise the looper lis advanced, its point rising and entering the needle-thread loop held in the throat of the loop-carrier il, as shown in Fig. 7, and as the needle approaches the highest point in its movement the looper, continuing to advance above the fabric, carries the loop of second thread beyond the line of travel of the needle and holds itin such relation thereto that the needle iii-descending will pass between the looper and its thread. At the same time the loop-carrier has begun its rearward motion, the several parts assuming approximately the positions indicated in Fig. 8.

The descent of the needle between the looper and its thread accompanied by a continued retreat of the looper and loop-carrier causes the withdrawal and disengagement of the loop-carrier from the needle-thread loop and the withdrawal of the looper from said loop, leaving a loop of second thread extending through the loop of needle-thread and around the needle, as indicated in Figs. 9 and 4, the former illustrating the position of the parts just after the needle-thread loop has escaped from the loop-carrier, owing to the backward motion of the latter, with the looper partially withdrawn from the loop ai'- ter having delivered a loop of its thread to the needle, while Fig. 4 illustrates the positions of the parts at the completion of one and the beginning of the next succeeding stitch. This cycle of operation being rcpeated, accompanied by a proper feeding or advance of the fabric, will result in the for- IOO IIO

mation of a finish or overseam on the edge of the fabric.

lt will be observed that the looper moves in a single plane and is given a movement as to direction compounded of -the vertical and horizontal motions communicated to its looper-carrier, and that the loop-carrier also moves in a singleplane, its motion beinguniform, as derived from a crank, and, further, that the loop-carrier traverses in a path diagonal to the plane of the loopers movement, passing the needle on one side and the looper on the opposite side, so that the looper will enter the loop of needle-thread between the loop-carrier and the next preceding stitch. Moreover, the loop-carrier and its operating mechanisms are so located and arranged as to be readily accessible, being arranged to one side of the needle and feed-dog under the work-plate, while the 'looper and its operating mechanisms are situated wholly on the opposite side of the feed-dog and needle beyond the work-plate, so that there is no interference between the looper and loop-carrier as. they approach and pass at'one point only.

The width of the inish or seam will depend upon the. position of the needle with relation to the path of the loop-carrier and looper, and an increase in the thickness of the fabric operated upon can be provided for by increasing the vertical motion of the looper, and as the motions of the looper are dependent upon the forms of the cam-grooves in the cam-cylinders it will be obvious that by changing the forms of the cam-grooves or substituting cams of proper form the machine can readily and expeditiously be adapted to the requirements of the material or width of seams desired.

It is common to employ in overseaming-machines a finger around which the stitches are formed and from which they pass oft onto the fabric as the latter is fed along, said finger assisting to support the edge of the fabric at the point wherethe stitches are at the time being applied to regulate the size of the stitches and enable the stitch-forming operation to be performed in theabsence ofany fabric, and as this is a desirable feature the machineshown has been provided with afinger 16, made integral with or attached to the work-plate.

Having thus fully described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. ln an overseaming-machine such as described the combination with the reciprocating thread-carrying needle, of the oscillatory reciprocating thread-carrying looper moving in a curved path in a single plane around the edge of the cloth-plate, and the loop-carrier provided with an entering-point and retaining-shoulder, said loopcarrier moving horizontally in a path diagonal to the plane of movement of the looper; substantially as described.

2. Inl an overs'eaming-machine such as described the combination with the reciprocating thread-carrying needle and feed-dog, of the loop-carrier and its actuating mechanism located and supported on one side of the needle and feed-dog, and the thread -carrying looper and its actuating mechanism supported on the opposite side o f the needle and feeddog, the looper moving in a path around the edge of the fabric and the loop-carrier moving horizontally in a path diagonal to the plane of movement of the looper; substantially as described. l

3. In an overseaming-machine, such as described, thecombination with the main driving-shaft, the needle, actuating mechanism intermediate the needle and the driving-shaft for reciprocating the needle, the oscillatory reciprocating looper-carrier and its two actuating-cams, of the pivotally-supported loopcarrier driven from a crank on the main driving-shaft, and the thread-carrying looper secured to the looper-carrier, said loop-carrier operating to carry the needle-thread loop and present it in the path of theflooper, and the latter operating to carry its thread through the needle-thread loop and present it to the needle; substantially as described.

4. The combination with the reciprocating needle, the oscillatory reciprocating loopercarrier and the driving mechanism therefor including the two cam-cylinders vrotating in unison, of the thread-carrying looper secured to the looper-carrier, and the loop carrier provided with an entering-point a lower loopas described.

5. 4In an overseaming-machine such as described, the combination with the reciprocating needle, the cloth-plate and the feed-dog, the thread-carrying looper moving around the edge of thel cloth-plate from a point below and near the edge to a point above the cloth-plate beyond the path of the needle and the loopcarrier, projecting across the plane of the feed-dog and'reciprocating horizontally in a path extending from one side the needle to the opposite side the looper; substantially as described.

6. In an overseaming-machine such as described, the combination of the needle, and the feed-dog, of the upwardly-curved threadcarrying looper, supported and operated by the oscillatory reciprocating looper-carrier, and the loop-carrier formed with a horizontally-cu rved shank and provided with an entering-point and thread-engaging shoulder,

IOO

`retaining shoulder, and a curved shank, the

said loop-carrier being attached to a verti" cally-pivoted oscillatory driver and extending through an opening in the feed-dog. 7. The combination with the reciprocating needle, and the oscillatory reciprocating n said loop-Carrier reciprocating in a horizonral I 5- plane beneath lhe cloth-plate, its engaging end moving in a path diagonal to the plane of Jhe loopers movement and extending from on one side the needlcs path to Iche opposite side of the loopers plane of motion; substan- 2o ifially as described.

JOHN T. COLLINS. VILLIAM H. STEDMAN. JOSEPH M. MERROlV.

lVi'nesses:

ROBERT D. SMITH, WINFIELD C. GRAHAM. 

